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Home , Akhenaten, Amarna, Ankh, Aten, Aten (city), Crook and flail

AMARNA ANCIENT ’S PLACE IN THE ’S PLACE IN THE SUN A LETTER FROM THE Dear Students,

Of all the subjects that appeal to people of every age, blockbuster and the Golden Age of and I know my own 11-year-old son would agree the , presented by Mellon Financial with me, Ancient Egypt and its mysteries must rank Corporation, beginning February 3, 2007 at The among the most intriguing. And here in West Franklin Institute. It will certainly be “The Year of Philadelphia, at the University of Pennsylvania Egypt” in Philadelphia, and I encourage you to visit Museum of and Anthropology, is one of both these wonderful exhibits. the finest collections of ancient Egyptian materials in the . Visit our exhibit to find out all about this mysterious where young Tutankhamun grew up, a city built Come here almost any day and you can see an Eskimo in praise of the mighty , the , and where the whaling boat, view a Japanese Buddhist shrine, walk lived with his beautiful wife around the third largest known in the world, . Join us in our search for clues as to why the and look up at two of the great cedar totem poles of ancient city of Amarna existed only a few short years the American Northwest. Celebrate World Culture before it was abandoned again to the desert. Days here at the Museum, come to family workshops or enjoy our award- winning summer camp sessions. We look forward to welcoming you all to this great Penn Museum is alive with activities and opportunities museum. to discover more, not just about ancient peoples, but people living today all over the world. Sincerely,

I would especially like to invite you to a remarkable Richard M. Leventhal new exhibit here at Penn Museum, Amarna, Ancient Egypt’s Place in the Sun. We are pleased to be host- The Williams Director ing this complementary exhibition to the national Penn Museum

Statue of with features of Tutankhamun, provenance unknown, possibly Thebes, late Dynasty 18-early Dynasty 19 (1332-1292 BCE), greywacke

Amun typically appears as a man wearing a tall, double-plumed headdress. His tall headdress is missing from this statue, but his crown bears traces of gilding. Amun wears the false beard of a , an elaborately beaded broad collar, and a short kilt decorated on the belt with a -, a symbol related both to the goddess and to the , the hieroglyph meaning “life”. The god also holds indicating his . His hands, which have been intentionally cut back, represent a deliberate alteration to allow the statue to fit into a shrine or a portable ceremonial boat used to carry it in processions. Photo: Tom Jenkins. CREDITS The educational supplement “Amarna, Ancient Egypt’s Place in the Sun” was a collaboration between The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology and the News In Education program of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Copyright © 2006 Philadelphia Newspapers, LLC. All rights reserved. The writer was Sara Shahriari of Hollister Kids, Wynnewood, PA. The editor was Peter Landry of Hollister Kids. The Graphic Designer was Robyn Platoni of Hollister Kids. Photos of the exhibit were provided by the University of Pennsylvania Museum. 2 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN LOOKING AT ANCIENT EGYPT

In ancient Egypt, a rich and strong empire grew on the banks of Early pharaohs conquered , which was in modern Sudan, the – and lasted for over 3,000 years. Under powerful and the mines there created such wealth for the pharaohs pharaohs, the civilization let people settle down and farm that leaders throughout the world begged them for gold. Later, instead of wandering the land in search of food. Once - Nubian kings conquered Egypt and ruled there during the 25th tled, they developed towns and , laws and property, Dynasty (760-656 BCE). religions and temples, art and writing. Humankind began to blossom, create and think in new ways. Of course, over 3,000 years Egypt went through many changes. Historically, time in ancient Egypt is divided into 32 dynasties, Ancient Egypt was an attractive area for people long ago. or ruling families. It also is divided into nine periods, each of The Nile River was a source of life and transportation in which is made up of a few dynasties. The periods are The Early the otherwise dry and sweltering North African desert. Dynastic Period, which began in 2950 BCE; The Old Kingdom; Birds, animals and could be found to eat. The peo- The First Intermediate Period; The Middle Kingdom; The ple of ancient Egypt knew that their lives depended on Second Intermediate Period; The New Kingdom; The Third the Nile. Each summer, the river would flood and carry Intermediate Period; The Late Period; the Ptolemaic Period, and wet, fertile earth over the dry land. When the flood the Greco Roman Period, which ended in 395 CE. ended, people planted crops. Because of the Nile, saw life as a cycle. To help understand the cycle In 30 BCE, Egypt came under control of Empire. of life and death, they developed a complex religion with The days of Egypt’s supremacy ended, and it was slowly many . absorbed by the newer and more powerful .

Around 3100 BCE, two separate cultures developed in The people and events you will learn about in this special stu- Egypt: the Upper Egyptian culture in the south, and the dent supplement lived during the 18th Dynasty, which lasted Lower Egyptian culture in the north. At first it doesn’t from 1539 to 1292 BCE. seem to make sense that was in the north, but it was lower in relation to the Nile River, which Pharaoh Akhenaten, his beautiful wife Queen Nefertiti, and his flows from south to north, from central to the probable son Tutankhamun were all part of this dynasty. During . In Egypt, south was upriver, and this time one of the most dramatic changes in Egypt took place: north was downriver. Akhenaten built a new city, Amarna, for a god named the Aten, and outlawed all other gods. The , sometimes In 3100 BCE a southern king named united the two called “The Amarna Experiment,” resulted in some of the best- cultures into one kingdom. This was the beginning of known art, tombs, writing and records of ancient Egypt. That is Egypt’s tremendous power in the region. Around this time why, even though the period was only around 30 years long, it we see signs that hieroglyphic writing was used for commu- is one of the most famous in Egyptian history. nication and keeping records of Egypt’s wealth.

This wealth came from two sources: from its farm- land and from gold. Farming in Egypt produced a of food, but not everyone had to work on the ACTIVITY land. Some people could be , doctors, lawyers, soldiers and writers. Society became IN THE NEWS very organized, and this helped Egypt prosper. The gold came into Egypt from the south. We are constantly discovering things about the past. A civilization, an important document or the memory of a person’s life can fade away until someone rediscovers it. Look through The Inquirer and find a story about a redis- covery. Read the story and then write a paragraph on how Statue of Meryma’at, Thebes, Dra Abu -Naga, late Dynasty 18 or early Dynasty 19 (1332-1279 BCE), limestone this rediscovery is valuable, and what it can teach us. Meryma’at was a barber in the cult of Amun. The inscription on his kilt is a prayer to that god requesting offerings of food and drink and a happy life for his , or life force. Photo: Tom Jenkins. 3 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN AKHENATEN’S NEW WORLD

When Akhenaten became king in 1353 BCE he began to make changes. He declared that there was only one god who could be worshiped – “SEE AKHETATEN, the Aten – and he declared that as pharaoh he was the only person who could communicate WHICH THE SUN DISK with this god. WISHES TO HAVE Why did Akhenaten make this huge change? Some people think he wanted to get rid of BUILT FOR HIMSELF.” the powerful priests of Amun Re, whose power could challenge the pharaoh’s. Other people think that Akhenaten was totally dedicated to the Aten, and that he was one - Inscription of Akhenaten’s words of the first people in history to express on the founding of Akhetaten, unique and personal thoughts on spirituality.

now called Amarna. The Aten literally meant “the disk of the sun.” Akhenaten searched for a place to build a new city for the Aten. He found it in a spot where the sun appeared to rise from Imagine that you have the power to shape the world around an eastern valley and spread its light over a you: to build a city, change a religion and live as the represen- broad piece of land in front of the Nile river. Trial piece, Amarna, Dynasty 18, reign tative of god on earth. It’s hard for people today to think of this The new city was named Akhetaten, “horizon of Akhenaten (1353-1336 BCE), limestone kind of power, but it was the power that Pharaoh Akhenaten of the Aten.” Today, historians call the city Amarna. This shows the profile of Akhenaten. Traces wielded in Egypt during the Amarna period. of ink outlines remain. While the earliest periods The pharaoh lived at Amarna with his family. As a result, of his reign show figures with very exaggerated features, these details quickly become more natu- During his rule, from 1353 to 1336 BCE, Akhenaten changed all the government officials, artists, builders and families who ral. Photo: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Egyptian life in a big way. He moved the capital city of Egypt served the king moved there, too. This was a huge move, as if Archaeology and Anthropology. from Thebes to Amarna, then known as Akhetaten, a city he the president decided to move this country’s capital from constructed on what had been just a piece of desert. There he Washington, D.C., to a new city in Nebraska. created a new religion and new temples. His influence lived on beyond his death. As the population grew, the city stretched north and south along ACTIVITY the Nile, which was the source of water for the wells the peo- You may know that throughout their history ancient Egyptians ple of Amarna dug into the desert. Official royal buildings and IN THE NEWS worshiped many gods and goddesses. In some ways these the temples of the Aten were concentrated in the heart of the were a lot like people: they had arguments, could get married city. Suburbs, where most people lived, surrounded the center and had children. Together, they were believed to control of the city. Symbols of power are still very everything from health to rainfall to the afterlife. important today. Look through Of course, daily life went on for people. They The Inquirer for pictures you think Everyday Egyptians kept images of the gods and goddesses in farmed, fished and built as they had for hundred of years. The show symbols of power. Find and their homes and communicated with them. Making offerings, king, his wives and children went about their daily lives, but the cut out at least three symbols. celebrating religious holidays and preparing complex funerals family had a new significance in the new religion. Instead of the Then, write a sentence on what the were all a part of Egyptians’ constant interactions with their royal many statues of gods the people had been used to seeing when symbol is, and how it shows power. gods. worshipping in the past, the king’s family were now Egyptians’ Share a symbol with your class. visible link to god. In , at important events, and even Finish by drawing a symbol you Akhenaten was born into this world of many gods. At that time, traveling around the city, the pharaoh family were not only roy- could use to show a power or skill Amun Re was the most important of Egypt’s gods. Amun Re was alty or representatives of gods on earth: they were the people’s you have. a mysterious god with many abilities, but he appeared to the peo- only link to god. They also took the place of myths of the gods ple as the sun. A powerful group of priests served Amun-Re. and their families 4 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN SIGNS OF THE KINGS’ POWER

In a world without television, radio or computers, how Pharaohs built monuments, temples and tombs that were “GOLD IS LIKE would you know who was leading your country, and covered with carved images and hieroglyphs. These pic- what he or she was doing? tures showed scenes even an Egyptian with no education could understand, and used a few key symbols with which IN THE COUNTRY This was the situation in ancient Egypt, where pharaohs people were familiar. came to the and ruled a large country filled with OF YOUR SON.” people who would probably never even see their king. This is why symbols were so important in ancient Egypt: The pharaohs communicated their messages of power and they allowed the pharaohs to represent their authority to - Letter from the King protection to people through artwork and symbols. the people they ruled. Here are some symbols used by pharaohs and what they mean: of Mittani to Akhenaten’s mother, Queen Tiy

The The The crook and flail usually appear together, often held crossed over a king’s chest. The uraeus (yoo-REE-es) was a rearing cobra, often made of gold, worn on the brow of These symbols probably were inspired by shepherd’s tools. Shepherds used the crook a pharaoh’s crown. The cobra was the goddess , who protected the Pharaoh and to guide, catch or rescue sheep, as well as to lean on. The flail was used for shooing destroyed his enemies. She was a goddess of Lower Egypt. Sometimes the cobra is paired flies and as a . They became symbols of the god , and also of pharaohs, rep- with the vulture goddess on the front of the uraeus. Nekhbet was a goddess of resenting power over and protection of the people. , and was a mother-like of the Pharaoh.

The Headdress The Ankh The nemes headdress was a piece of cloth tied around the head, The ankh (ANK) was the Egyptian hieroglyph for life. Gods and kings with two pieces hanging down on either side of the face. The are often seen holding this symbol, which looks like a with a nemes is probably the best known of all headdresses, because King looped end. is shown wearing one on his beautiful gold sarcophagus.

The Red Crown The White Crown The red crown is the crown of Lower Egypt. The white crown is the crown of Upper Egypt.

The Double Crown The Blue Crown The double crown is the white and red crowns worn togeth- The blue crown appears in art later than all the other crowns of er, representing the unification of , Egypt. It was probably a war crown, because tomb paintings show which happened around 3100 BCE. it worn in battles. 5 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN EGYPT’S TRADITIONAL GODS

Amun Re Amun Re was a combined god. He was a creator god Amarna period, all people in Egypt could worship any of the and also the sun god. Amun and Re became one over close to 2,000 small and large gods of Egyptian myth. When time. Amun means “the hidden one,” and repre- Akhenaten made the Aten the only god, he also made it a sents a power that is everywhere in the universe, god that only the pharaoh and his family could worship or but cannot be seen. Re represents the sun as it communicate with. Egyptian people’s only connection with appears in the sky. Over time, Amun Re the Aten was through the pharaoh. became thought of as the chief of the gods. During the New Kingdom he became even more important, and people believed that he Osiris was the source of all other gods, and the only Osiris was the god of the dead. A mythical king, he was force of creation in the universe. During this betrayed, killed, and cut into pieces by his evil brother, Seth. period and the Amarna period Egyptians came Their sisters Isis and Nepthys found the pieces of the body and closer to the practice of , or the wor- put the pieces back together as a . Osiris is drawn as a ship of only one god, than they ever had before. mummy with arms crossed. Isis also became the wife of Osiris, and had a son with him named . When Seth heard of Amun Re was important to all Egyptians, from the Horus he searched for him to kill him, but Isis hid him until he pharaoh to the most common person. Myth said was old enough to challenge Seth. A long battle followed, but that Amun Re was the pharaoh’s father, and that Horus finally beat Seth and became king. When Horus became he ruled Egypt through the pharaoh. However, king, Osiris came to his position as king of the dead. Instead of this god was not only concerned with politics this being a sad , Osiris was viewed as a peaceful god who and powerful people. Normal Egyptians were held the possibility of eternal life for ancient Egyptians. free to worship him and to ask him for help, because he was concerned with order and jus- tice in the universe, from the largest to the Isis smallest detail. Isis was the goddess sister and wife of Osiris. She appears in drawings as a beautiful woman holding an ankh, a symbol of The Aten life. Her work healing Osiris and her devotion to her son Seth made Isis a very popular goddess who was worshiped in Egypt, The Aten was the round disk of the sun as North Africa and throughout the Mediterranean world. She you see it in the sky. Unlike other Egyptian was the most widely worshiped of all the Egyptian goddesses. gods, the Aten was never shown as a per- son or animal: its only image was the sun disk, sometimes carved with hands extend- ing downward as rays. This god existed Horus before the Amarna period, but it was Horus was the son of Osiris and Isis. He defeated his father’s Akhenaten who made the Aten the only killer, Seth, and became a king of Egypt. Horus was god of the god worshiped in Egypt. This was a huge sky. The reigning king was always thought of as the god change for the people of Egypt. Before the Horus.

Statue of , Thebes (Ramesseum), Dynasty 18, reign of III (1390-1353 BCE), granodiorite

Sekhmet was a warlike and protective goddess. Her imagery often accompanied the pharaoh into battle. With her fiery arrows, she could send plagues and other diseases against her (and Pharaoh’s) enemies. The Egyptians also asked her to ward off or cure diseases. Photo: Tom Jenkins. 6 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN

Figurine of , Memphis, Dynasty 18, reign of Amenhotep III - Tutankhamun (1390-1322 BCE), polychrome faience

Ptah, the god of creation and rebirth, appears seated on a low-back throne. Brilliantly colored and designed as part of a larger statue, this figurine was most likely set up in a shrine or temple at Memphis. Photo: Tom Jenkins.

Bastet was a popular goddess who appeared as woman with a "HOMAGE TO cat’s head. She was the gentle protector of pregnant women. Cats were important to Egyptians because they protected their THEE, OSIRIS, valuable food supplies from rodents. Many domestic cats were mummified and buried in temples of Bastet. LORD OF ETERNITY, Anubis was a man with a jackal’s head. He was the god of KING OF THE mummification, and may have been the god of death before Horus. Anubis led the of the dead to the underworld. GODS, WHOSE NAMES ARE Hathor was a goddess pictured as a woman with the head of a MANIFOLD, cow. She was the goddess of dance, love and music, and she also protected women during childbirth. Hathor was the wife WHOSE FORMS of Horus. ARE HOLY."

- to Osiris from The , Thoth was the scribe of the gods, and known as the inventor 1240 BCE. of writing. He was also a moon god. Thoth is one of the most distinctive-looking of the ancient Egyptians’ gods. He is often shown as a man with the head of an ibis: a bird with a long, thin beak. On of Thoth’s roles was recording the decision when a person’s heart was weighed after death. ACTIVITY Maat was the goddess of the balance of the universe. She stood IN THE NEWS for truth and order, and was drawn as a woman wearing an ostrich feather on her head. This feather was important when a Religion was important to ancient Egyptians, as it is important to many person’s heart was weighed after death. The heart was placed modern people. Look through The Inquirer for a story about religion. on one side of a scale, and Maat’s feather on another. If the per- Read it and write a paragraph summarizing the story. Then, write down son had led a bad life, their heart would not balance Maat’s three ways the religion in your news story is different from that of feather, and the heart would be fed to the monster Ammut. ancient Egyptians, and three ways in which it is similar. 7 AMARNA ANCIENT EGYPT’S PLACE IN THE SUN

Learning from art and artifacts Nefertiti Nefertiti jumps out at us from history thanks to this From jewelry to statues to hieroglyphs carved on monuments or sculpture, which was found in the abandoned scarabs, the ancient Egyptians’ desire to decorate, beautify and record Amarna workshop of the sculptor Tuthmosis by this world and the next has left us a surprisingly large record of their German archaeologists in 1912. Her name means culture. Even though the Egyptian empire ended more than 2,000 “The beautiful woman has come,” but she stood Scarabs years ago, through their art and writing we learn that today we still out in her time for her power as well as her beau- Scarabs are small stones carved as beetles. The rounded tops have things in common with these ancient people. Just like us, they ty. Ancient carvings show images of Nefetiti killing are carved as a beetle’s head, wings and legs, and the bot- liked gold, beauty, a good meal, being in love and spending time with traditional Egyptian enemies. toms are flat, usually with writing on them. Scarabs were friends. Look at the objects on this page to learn more about popular charms in ancient Egypt, and people rich and poor Egyptians through their arts. Usually, only pharaohs were shown in this power- wore them for luck and blessings. The writing on scarabs ful and aggressive pose. Nefertiti was Akhenaten’s could be a spell, a good-luck wish, or a name used as a seal. most important wife, and the mother of The could be pressed into wet clay or wax, leaving six daughters. Historians aren’t sure if its mark and showing who had made the seal. she or another of Akhenaten’s wives was the mother of King It may seem strange that a beetle would be Tut. This statue is now in a such an important animal to the Egyptians, museum in Germany. especially because scarab beetles are dung beetles. These beetles lay their eggs in balls SINAI they make out of animal droppings. They NILE DELTA roll the balls around on the ground, which (LOWER EGYPT) looks especially strange because the balls can become bigger than the beetles themselves. The Egyptians saw the beetle rolling the ball like the sun god MEMPHIS rolling the sun across the sky. The became associated with the god of the newly-risen sun, .

Beauty and Style RED Ancient Egyptians loved makeup, hairstyles and jew- SEA elry. Of course, over the 3,000 years of the Egyptian Empire, trends came and went, but UPI Newspictures the people’s focus on beauty and style was always present.

MIDDLE Makeup was an important part of their look. EGYPT EL-AMARNA Men and women wore heavy black eyeliner, AKHETATEN and women wore blush and lipstick. Different stones and minerals were ground up and mixed with water to make black and green eyeliner, King Tutankhamun and red blush and lipstick. Better known as King Tut, King Tutankhamun ruled Egypt for Egyptians loved good smells and perfume. only 10 years, from 1332 to 1322 BCE. Tut was about 19 years Their perfumes, which often used fat or oil bases, could old when he died. For years, people wondered why he died so be rubbed into the skin, and probably smelled of flowers young, and if he was murdered. A recent computer scan of his and spices. mummy shows a seriously broken leg. It is now believed he HAIR TRUE LAPIS LAZULI; may have died from an infection in the broken leg, but we may Long, thick black hair was the Egyptian ideal, but keep- never know for sure. Tut could have been poisoned or harmed ARMS SURPASSING GOLD, ing a luxurious head of black hair would have been a real in a way that the mummy can’t show. FINGERS LIKE LOTUS BUDS. pain in a hot climate, especially in a time when lice were everywhere. People usually cut their hair short, and wore His tomb was discovered in 1922, and is one of the very few wigs on special occasions. THEBES royal Egyptian tombs that hadn’t been robbed entirely of most 13th century BCE Egyptian Love Poem UPPER of its gold. An incredible number of gold artifacts and jewelry EGYPT were found there, including the one above. 8 ZUMA Press 9 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN ATEN’S SUPREMACY

Pharaoh Akhenaten to the people of Egypt, and they “WHEN YOU CAST YOUR RAYS, THE HERDS came as a shock. The one and only god would be the ARE HAPPY IN THEIR PASTURES. TREES AND Aten, which had no human or animal form. It was simply PLANTS GROW GREEN. ALL THE FLOCKS GAM- the sun in the sky. Only Akhenaten could know the BOL AND ALL THE BIRDS COME TO LIFE Aten’s wishes, or ask the Aten for help. BECAUSE YOU HAVE RISEN FOR THEM. EVEN THE FISH IN THE RIVERS LEAP TOWARD When Akhenaten closed all the gods’ temples, including YOUR FACE. YOU CREATED THE EARTH TO those of Amun Re, and announced that he was moving to PLEASE YOU - PEOPLE, CATTLE AND FLOCKS, a new city, priests suddenly lost all their power. But life EVERYTHING THAT WALKS ON LAND OR didn’t change just for the rich and powerful priests. TAKES OFF AND FLIES, USING WINGS.” HYMN TO THE ATEN When the traditional gods were outlawed, everyday Egyptians lost their connection to the spiritual world. Did Akhenaten really believe in the Aten, or did he just use Akhenaten proclaimed that he and his family were the the Aten to upset Egypt’s power structure and reshape it only ones capable of communicating with the Aten. If the way he wanted? Signs show that Akhenaten really did people wanted to communicate with the god, they would believe in his spiritual connection to the Aten. He com- have to look to the pharaoh. posed songs and poems in honor of the god, and sometimes neglected Egypt’s well-being and safety in his pursuit of Of course, some people weren’t happy about all these building the perfect home for the Aten. But all of changes, but they had also been trained for generations to Akhenaten’s devotion to the Aten couldn’t erase what the think that the pharaoh was a god on Earth. They didn’t people of Egypt had known for hundreds of years. challenge his changes. Soon after Akhenaten’s death, Amarna was abandoned You may hear people claim that the religion of the Aten and the capital cities moved to Memphis and Thebes, was monotheistic, which means a religion with only one where the Aten was turned back into just one of many god. Certainly the religion of the Aten was much closer to minor gods. monotheism than the religion of the many gods Egyptians Relief with Aten, Amarna, Dynasty 18, reign of had worshiped before. But there is one problem: The peo- Akhenaten (1353-1336 BCE), calcite (Egyptian alabaster) ple had to worship Akhenaten, his wife Nefertiti and their This relief fragment shows the hands at the ends of the Aten's family as the representatives of the Aten. The royal family HOW MANIFOLD sun rays, one of the deity's few human features. would, in turn, worship the Aten. This isn’t strictly Photo: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology monotheism as we know it today. and Anthropology. IT IS, WHAT THOU Think of it - what if you had to worship the president, who could then worship god. The Egyptians were used HAST MADE! THEY During the rule of Akhenaten’s father, Amenhotep III, to thinking of their leaders as godly, so it wasn’t as strange the numerous gods of ancient Egypt were worshiped to them as it would be to you - but they still remembered ARE HIDDEN FROM widely, but Amun Re was held above the rest. The priests the old ways. of Amun Re became so powerful and wealthy that they THE FACE OF MAN. could even challenge the pharaoh. Around 1346 BCE Akhenaten chose Amarna as the site of a new city to be built for the Aten. All the people O SOLE GOD, LIKE This wasn’t good for the royal family, and within his life- whose jobs depended on the pharaoh, from sculptors to time Amenhotep III made steps to raise other gods up and builders to government officials, left their homes in WHOM THERE IS control the power of the priests. One of the gods he called Thebes and traveled to Amarna to begin a new life under attention to was the Aten, a solar god who was represent- one god. There, temples were built without roofs, so that NO OTHER! ed by an image of the sun in the sky. the sun could be seen in the sky. As you can see from the hymn to the Aten, the Aten was seen as the giver of all Around the year 1350 BCE, new rules were given by life; a kind and protective source of all good. -The Hymn to the Aten 10 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN CREATING ART IN AMARNA

Akhenaten set out to build the Aten a city so amazing, rich when Amarna was abandoned the sculptor put all his Glasswork was new to the Egyptians, and they were and beautiful that it put memories of old gods out of his works in storage and shut his house and workshop forev- experimenting with adding color and pattern to their subjects’ minds. He wanted to create a place worthy of his er. He had no reason to take of the royal fami- creations during the Amarna period. Evidence at Amarna god, and one that would impress his people with the ly with him: They were disgraced, and no one wanted to shows that artisans made large Aten’s magnificence. look at them. amounts of glass and faience in the city, so much that some of it Because the pharaoh was so wealthy, he could hire as Another important art form used to show the royal fami- was probably exported and trad- many painters, sculptors and artisans as he wanted - and it ly was painting. Most of the best-preserved paintings are ed outside of Egypt. seems that a virtual army of artists lived in Amarna during found inside tombs, where they have been protected from the city’s short life. sun and sand, which would have ruined them. The paint- The life of an artisan of Amarna ings show gods and funerals, as well as everyday activities was fairly stable. Most lived Egyptians used a great deal of freestanding sculpture, large like hunting and preparing food. with their families in and small, and also often carved images into rock. These comfortable, middle-class works lasted a long time, and could be placed in public Less glamorous than sculptors and painters, but more nec- homes. When Amarna was areas as symbols of the pharaoh and the Aten. During the essary, were potters. In a world before plastic, food and abandoned, they took their Amarna period, Akhenaten wanted the Egyptian people to liquids were stored in clay pots. It took skill to make these tools and applied their skills stop worshipping the usual gods, and to instead worship vessels, which were used by the very rich and the very to making paintings and the royal family as representatives of the Aten. This made poor alike. sculptures of their new it important to give Egyptians many images of the royal rulers, leaving behind family at which to look. Beyond functional clay items were ornamental items made their works, which of glass and faience (fay-ANS), a kind of baked earthen- would be lost for One thing that made ancient Egyptian art different from ware. The artisans who worked with these materials made thousands of years. art today is that it tended to stay the same. Artists didn’t beautiful and delicate decorations. Because glass and develop many new ways of depicting the world. It was faience shined and gleamed like the sun’s light, they were considered good to copy the past, so artists painted and especially popular in Amarna. carved in the same style for thousands of years. Except in This Dynasty 18 or 19 Amarna. Faience had been used in Ancient Egypt for a long time ceramic wine jar may have before the Amarna period. It was earthenware, like clay, but been made in Amarna. Wine was a popular drink Akhenaten himself developed a new style for showing the was covered with a smooth, sparkling and colorful glaze. in Ancient Egypt. human body in art. Instead of the very stiff and straight traditional figures, his were long and curved, with large hips and thin arms. Some people have even wondered if Akhenaten was born with an illness that gave him a strange figure - but now it is believed he was shown in this way as part of the new artistic style.

Family portraits of the royal family, Akhenaten, Nefertiti ACTIVITY and their daughters, also changed at this time. In addition to formal, ceremonial pictures, the family was shown play- IN THE NEWS ing and relaxing together, holding each other and enjoy- ing life under the rays of the Aten. Look though The Inquirer for a story about a modern work of art or a popular craft. Remember, jewelry, dishes and clothing can be consid- One of Amarna’s residents was Tuthmosis, the city’s chief ered crafts. Read the story. Write a paragraph describing what your sculptor. He was in charge of making statues of the royal object is, how it is made, and what it is used for. Then, imagine that family. One of the most famous statues in the world, the an archaeologist finds the item from your story 2,000 years from now. bust of beautiful queen Nefertiti, was found in his work- Write a second paragraph on what he or she could learn about our shop in 1912. Along with this now famous sculpture were world from the item. around 50 other works of art. How did this treasure trove survive thousands of years in the desert? It seems that 11 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN A LIFE IN ANCIENT EGYPT

“DO NOT CONTROL YOUR WIFE IN HER HOUSE WHEN YOU KNOW SHE IS EFFICIENT. DO NOT SAY TO HER: ‘WHERE IS IT? GET IT!’ WHEN SHE HAS PUT IT IN THE RIGHT PLACE. LET YOUR EYE OBSERVE IN SILENCE; THEN YOU WILL RECOGNIZE HER SKILL.”

-Advice for a happy marriage from a New Kingdom text.

Children in ancient Egypt were considered a great bless- from 15 to 20. Although a man legally was allowed to ing. Parents hoped to have large families and that their marry more than one wife, most were only able to children would support them in old age. support one wife. A pharaoh, however, could have many wives, as insurance he would have an heir to succeed him. When a child was born, it spent the first few years of life living with its mother and other women in the home. Once married, a man had to support his new wife and the Children were given toys such as balls, dolls and board children they would have. He usually worked the same job games. They played outside most of the time and had pet his father had, using skills he had learned as a child. The dogs, cats and monkeys. When they were very young, majority of men worked as farmers, and the work was hard. most kids wore no clothes because the weather in Egypt was hot and dry all the time. As they got older, boys would Women’s first job was to take care of the house and chil- wear a cloth of white linen around their waists, and girls dren, which was no small amount of work. Some would wear white linen dresses. Many Egyptians, even ancient writings show that Egyptian society valued the kids, liked to wear jewelry made of colorfully painted clay work that women did, and saw being a mother as an beads, stones or gold. important job. Some women, mainly those from important royal backgrounds, worked in government Boys who would become doctors, lawyers, scribes, priests or as priestesses. Others were scribes, singers or dancers. or government officials went to school to learn writing and math. Boys and girls without wealthy or middle-class Egyptians lived along the banks of the Nile, just far parents who could afford to train them for a profession enough back that the spring floods would not their probably did not go to school. Only daughters of very homes. The homes were made out of mud brick, which wealthy families learned to read and write. was made by mixing mud with sand and straw, shaping it Steleophorus statue, provenance unknown, Dynasty 18, reign of Tuthmosis III-IV (1479-1390 BCE), painted in molds, then leaving it to dry in the sun. Some poor fam- limestone The average lifespan in ancient Egypt was only 40 years. ilies lived in one-room homes, but it was more common Because they had no antibiotics, simple illnesses killed for homes to be one or two stories, with rooms that encir- The deceased Hednakht kneels behind a stela displaying a hymn to the sun god. Photo: Tom Jenkins. many people by the time they reached that age. Having cled a courtyard. In the courtyard, women cooked and children was very dangerous for women, because medi- baked in ovens built there. cine was not advanced enough to help them if something went wrong with delivery of a baby. Plus, life in general Beauty was a very important thing to Egyptians. Many was more dangerous than most people’s lives today. paintings show us that they wore wigs and beautiful jew- employ a hairdresser and a makeup artist! History shows us Wars, hard physical work and the dangers of hunting elry. Men and women lined their eyes with a black that Egyptian people had many of the same jobs and could all shorten a person’s life. Because of shorter lives, material called kohl to cut down on sun glare, to look responsibilities, and enjoyed many of the same things we people got married much younger than they do today. fashionable and to prevent eye infection. They used per- do - but most didn’t have our opportunity for education Girls were usually married around 14, and boys anywhere fumes and scented oils, and a rich women might even and healthy, long lives. 12 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN THE OLD GODS RETURN

Tutankhaten, later known as Tutankhamun or, today, Akhenaten died. The pharaoh’s family was in a bad situa- Ankhsenpaaten changed hers to Ankhsenamun. By changing simply King Tut, was born around 1341 BCE. It was a very tion. Tut, who could have become king, was a child, and the last part of their names from “aten” to “amun,” they strange time in Egyptian history. His father, Pharaoh the country was unstable. A person named demonstrated that Amun Re, not the Aten, was again the Akhenaten, had moved the Egyptian capital from Thebes became pharaoh, but no one knows who he (or she) was. important god to the royal family. Life went on with the to Amarna and changed Egypt’s religion from one of many Was it Nefertiti using a new name, or one of Akhenaten’s young couple in charge until a sudden tragedy. At around 19 gods to one of a single god, the Aten. daughters? Neferneferuaten was followed by another mys- years old, Tut died. It has been suggested that he died from tery Pharaoh named . Combined, they ruled an infection resulting from a broken bone. His early death Akhenaten had several wives, but his chief wife was Nefertiti. for only four years, and their identities remain hidden. came as a surprise, and he was buried in a small tomb origi- Together, they had six daughters, but it seems they had no nally made for someone else. There he would lie, forgotten, son who could take the throne and rule as pharaoh. In 1332 BCE Tut and his half-sister, Ankhsenpaaten, until 1922, when the tomb was discovered by a British Tutankhaten is believed to be the son of Akhenaten and one became the rulers of Egypt. Even though they were too archaeologist. of his other wives, a woman named . young for marriage by Egyptian standards, they had been married because together their claim to the throne was Meanwhile, Ankhsenamun was in a dangerous position. Life should have been secure stronger than it was separately. They were only around nine Without her husband, her claim to the throne was hard to for the family, but years old. Obviously, the two children were under control keep. She made a plan. Ankhsenamun wrote to the king of Akhenaten’s actions had put of the adults in their lives. Nefertiti, Tut’s grandmother Tiy, the , a group warring with the Egyptians, asking for Egypt at . He would the royal advisor Aye and a general called may him to send a prince for her to marry. This was unusual, not wage war against have all struggled for control of the young couple. but could have worked out well for everyone. The king people who were mov- sent a son to marry her, but the prince was murdered on ing in on Egypt’s terri- Sometime around 1330 BCE, soon after they became his way to Egypt. tory because he was rulers, Tut and Ankhsenpaaten left Amarna forever. Tut, busy creating a city for who had only known his father’s city, moved his adminis- Two men are suspected of the murder: The royal advisor, the Aten and he pre- trative capital to Memphis, an old city used as a govern- Aye, and the general, Horemheb. Aye married Queen ferred to rely on ment center. At Thebes, the center of traditional religion, Ankhsenamun and became pharaoh in 1322 BCE, but died a . He also he opened the old gods’ temples and showered them with few years later, in 1319. Aye’s death marks the end of the 34- angered many of gifts and riches. He announced that he would bring back year Amarna Period as it is known by historians. Horemheb Egypt’s common the old ways, and the people were happy about it. In many then got his chance. He became pharaoh and his reign marks people, who didn’t like places outside Amarna, people had never really given up the end of the 18th Dynasty. He tried to erase any memory that he had taken their the old gods. The city of Amarna had been in use for only of the pharaohs who had come right before him, and gods away. 18 years, from its founding by Akhenaten in 1348 BCE to removed the names of Akhenaten, Neferneferuaten, its abandonment by Tut in 1330. Smenkhkare, Tut and Aye wherever he found them. Amarna When Tutankhaten was and everyone associated with it was wiped from the mind of around six years old, Tutankhaten changed his name to Tutankhamun, and ancient Egypt. ACTIVITY Statuette of Tutankhamun, provenance unknown, late Dynasty 18, reign of a succes- IN THE NEWS sor of Akhenaten (1332-1322 BCE), bronze with traces of gold Photo: Tom Jenkins. Politics and power were a difficult, sometimes dangerous business in Ancient Egypt, as they can be today. In The Philadelphia Inquirer, find a story about a modern leader who is having problems keeping control of his or her country. Read the story. Then, go online and learn more about the leader. Write a short biography of the leader, including information on his or her childhood, edu- cation, rise to power, and current problems. Add a paragraph suggesting a solu- tion to the problems the leader faces. 13 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN A JOURNEY AFTER DEATH

Mummies - they’re not only cool to look at: through them we One of the reasons the burial process was so important is that learn about ancient Egyptians’ bodies, culture and religion. Egyptians believed several parts of a person lived on and had needs after death. Egyptians didn’t see a person as made up of We don’t know exactly why Egyptians began using mummifi- just a body and a . Their beliefs involved more pieces. cation to preserve bodies before burial, but by 3100 BCE sim- ple mummification had begun. Five-hundred years later, in After death, Egyptians thought a person’s mummy rested in the 2600 BCE, the process had become much more complicated. tomb. A form of the person who died, the , could travel out Organs were being taken out of the body before burial, and into the world during the day but would come back to take chemicals were used to preserve, or embalm, the body. care of the mummy at night. Separately, the akh, or spirit, would be judged and if found worthy gain a place among the Around 2700 BCE, a god called Osiris became important as gods forever. Finally, the ka was an energy that was separated the god of the dead. His link to mummification is clear. The from a person during life, but returned at death. The ka need- myth of Osiris says he was a king murdered by his jealous ed special steps and offerings during burial so that it could live brother, Seth, who tore him to pieces. Their sisters, Isis and in the afterlife. Nepthys, found the body of Osiris and put him back together by embalming him. Osiris was the god Egyptians looked to for eternal life, and the mummification process became linked with him.

This Shabti is from Dynasty 19. Shabtis At first, only the rich could afford mummification, but over were figures placed hundreds of years it became something many people could have in tombs. Their pur- done. It is clear that people wanted to be mummified after pose was to perform work in the afterlife death, and it was seen as an important step for a better afterlife. for the person buried in the tomb. Some of the Egyptians’ ideas about death and the afterlife are different from those of today, yet their religion also shares ideas with many modern religions. Many modern religions teach that how you act during life affects what happens to your spirit after you die. The ancient Egyptians believed this too, but they also thought that how a person was buried was extremely important “TO SPEAK to what happened in the afterlife. This belief led to the huge investment ancient Egyptian people put into their tombs and THE NAME funerals. OF THE Commonly, a person would have his tomb constructed and prepared during life. After death, the mummification process ACTIVITY DEAD IS TO took 70 days. First, the and internal organs, except the heart, were removed. The heart was left in place because when IN THE NEWS MAKE HIM the deceased went to be judged, it was believed the heart would be placed on a scale and weighed against the feather of In ancient Egypt only wealthy men learned to read and Maat, goddess of the balance of the universe. write. Look through The Inquirer and find the opinion and LIVE AGAIN.” editorial section. Read the letters. Then, imagine you live After the organs were removed, they were either wrapped in in ancient Egypt, and want to write a letter to your local linen or placed in special jars called canopic jars. Then the body newspaper on why women and men who are not wealthy -Ancient Egyptian was treated with natron, a salt that dries out tissue. It was this should be taught to read and write. Be sure to give at least tomb inscription dryness that preserved the body so well. The body was then three reasons for your belief, and support them all with coated in resin and wrapped in linen during a complex ritual examples and explanations. of prayer. 14 ANCIENT EGYPT’S AMARNA PLACE IN THE SUN THE WRITTEN ART

or write, or knew only basic symbols. Only boys who Egypt from the time he was a young boy. He wanted to were training to be scribes, or children from wealthy fam- know what the hieroglyphs meant, and when he found ilies, would learn to read and write. Extremely few out that no one could tell him, he vowed to solve the “BE A SCRIBE! women could do so. problem himself. YOUR BODY WILL Hieroglyphs were carved on the walls of temples and Champollion was convinced that hieroglyphs were phonet- tombs as part of grand monuments. Written records also ic, meaning the symbols represent sounds instead of repre- were kept for , wills and lists of belongings. These senting things as most other people thought. He also brought BE SLEEK, YOUR documents, however, were written in a shortened form a special skill to his work: he read Coptic, which he had called , which was much like our cursive writing. learned from church texts. He realized that the hieroglyphic HAND WILL BE symbols stood for sounds in the Coptic language. It is hard to believe that the language and writing of a civ- SOFT. YOU WILL ilization as strong and long-lasting as that of ancient Egypt Champollion learned many things about hieroglyphs, could be forgotten, but it was. The last evidence we have including that some symbols represented a single sound, NOT BE LIKE A of hieroglyphic writing comes from 450 CE. It is believed while other represented a group of sounds, or even a that as became more important in Egypt, whole word. For example, in hieroglyphs the symbol of an HIRED OX.” hieroglyphic writing was banned because it was closely owl represents the sound “m,” while a symbol of the sun tied with Egypt’s polytheistic religion. The Greek lan- represents the sound “.” These signs could be used to guage became widespread and the Egyptians use it to spell words, like the beginning of the name of the pharaoh -From a book by scribe develop a new alphabet called Coptic. It used mainly Ramses. Greek letters, with a few extra signs for sounds not found Nebmare-nakht, 12th in Greek. Another thing Champollion discovered was there are no or 11th century BCE. hieroglyphic symbols that represent just a vowel. The With the spread of Islam throughout North Africa, the vowel sound had to be implied, like the “a” in “ra.” Coptic language was replaced by . By 1100 CE nei- Champollion translated many hieroglyphic texts, and ther Egyptian writing or language were used. when he died at 42 years old he left the world a renewed understanding of an ancient script. When we write we use symbols to represent sounds. The But the Coptic language did live on in one form: in the ancient Egyptians did the same, but their symbols, called text of the Coptic Church. This survival of the language Being able to understand hieroglyphs has given modern hieroglyphs (HI-er-oh-gliffs), were more complicated and in the church would eventually be the key to understand- people a much greater appreciation of ancient Egyptian artistic than ours. ing hieroglyphs. life. It lets us in on stories as great at those of huge battles, as personal as love poems, and as ordinary as laundry lists, , which were used for around 3,000 Once the meaning of hieroglyphs was forgotten, people all from a people who began writing things down over years, were in use by the time Upper and Lower Egypt became curious about what the pictures meant. Scholars 5000 years ago. joined in 3100 BCE. It’s not known how the Egyptians assumed that they were simple picture writing, meaning developed hieroglyphs, whose origins were different—and that a picture of a tree represented a tree, or a picture of a probably independent—from the writing dog represented a dog. But this theory didn’t help crack ancient Sumerians developed at roughly the same time. hieroglyphs. The difficulty of understanding hieroglyphs was made worse by the fact that people had no idea what Hieroglyphic writing didn’t stay exactly the same for language they could be based on. thousands of years. By the Old Kingdom period, a less complicated writing style called hieratic developed. Later, In 1799, the French army discovered the Stone in a form that used even more simplified signs—— Egypt. The stone had the same message carved on it in was used. Greek, demotic and hieroglyphs. Researchers could final- ly match up Greek, a language they understood, with Ancient Egyptian people who wrote were called scribes. hieroglyphs. Being a scribe was a prestigious job, like being a doctor or lawyer. The scribes learned how to write at special In 1790, a child was born who would solve the hieroglyph- schools. Most Egyptian people did not know how to read ic . Jean-Francois Champollion was interested in 15 THANK YOU UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA MUSEUM OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY

For Sponsoring This News-In-Education Program

And special thanks to the following organizations, corporations, and foundations for supporting Penn Museum, the Amarna exhibition and related programs. The Annenberg Foundation Connelly Foundation Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation IBM Corporation The National Geographic Society

Penn Museum thanks its partner Penn Museum wishes to acknowledge lead The Franklin Institute Science Museum, support from the following individuals: host, beginning February 3, 2007, Andrea M. Baldeck, M.D., and of the nationally traveled blockbuster William M. Hollis, Jr. TUTANKHAMUN AND THE Susan H. Horsey GOLDEN AGE OF THE PHARAOHS. Mr. and Mrs. Robert M. Levy Margaret R. Mainwaring Frederick J. Manning Family Gregory Annenberg Weingarten